HMS Indefatigable
by Stephen Ratliff
Summary: New Marrissa Stories. Captain Picard joins his young Number One on the Holodeck as she plays Ms Midshipman Hornblower
1. And the Holodeck opened up

Title: Her Majesty's Ship Indefatigable

Author: Stephen

Series: TNG, New Marrissa Stories

Summary: Captain Picard takes up the mentorship of young Marrissa Flores, when he joins her for a little holodeck cruise on Sir Edward Pellew's HMS Indefatigable with her as his new midshipman Horatio.

Forward

I've long considered my Marrissa Stories as needing revision. I've tried to revise some of them, but when I did so, I left in the dependencies that were in other unrevised stories. This resulted in less that satisfactory revisions.

Recently, though, I've been convinced that a better course is to start from the very beginning and revise from there, leaving out all the plot holes, bad scenes, and other problems that I've been told of. This is, no doubt, a large task. Never the less, it is one that I really think I should do.

(Okay, I must acknowledge that there was some arm twisting in getting me to do it now. You know who you are, and you know that I shall have my revenge.)

My rules for doing this revision are as follows:

1) Start at the beginning. Once a story has been written, no back tracking in timeline.

2) Stories are set in stone for the next story one month after completion.

3) Feedback shall be considered at all points. It shall not be dismissed when well considered.

4) Chapters are not set in stone until the story is ... but it shall be noted when a chapter is changed when a new chapter comes out.

5) All characters must have flaws. Though Marrissa is the main character, nothing shall come easy for her.

6) Nothing that occurred in the old Marrissa stories will be sure to happen in the new ones. The concepts or plot of the stories may carry over, but every story shall be written fresh.

I've chosen to start with a completely fresh story ... well, to be honest, not completely fresh. This is actually a story I abandoned back in 2008, as I ran into too many things I couldn't do because of the stories set after it.

I intend to serialize this story on a weekly basis, just like I did with the early original Marrissa Stories.

So, pull up a chair, open that notepad for feedback if you wish, and listen to the tale of a young girl who found her path in life while her parents served on the Enterprise under Captain Jean-Luc Picard.

Stephen

...

Disclaimer: Star Trek is property of Paramount Pictures. Portions of this work are based on events and scenes from C. S. Forrester's _Mister Midshipman Hornblower_, property of the Forrester estate. In particular, the chapter known as "Hornblower and the man who saw God." Any resemblance of any character to a person living or dead is purely coincidental.

...

Chapter One

Marrissa Flores walked uneasily on the rolling deck of His Majesty's Ship Indefatigable. The ten year old girl had managed to reserve a great deal of time on the small holodeck on deck eight. Her mother and father were busy guarding something on the planet the Enterprise was orbiting, and she'd been quite bored over the last few days. She'd been so bored that she had actually sent that request to Captain Picard for him to mentor her.

Immediately regretting it of course, the young girl had what her mother had termed as terminal shyness among those she didn't know. Marrissa didn't like to hear it, but she had to acknowledge it was true. That was probably why she was here on the empty decks of Indefatigable, alone. She didn't have many friends. There was Jay, but he was younger, and a boy. He'd probably fit better on this ship than she would though.

Marrissa looked down at the outfit that the holodeck had provided her. British Midshipman cir 1795, deep blue jacket, with white velvet fake lapels, it wasn't that comfortable, but her Dad had said that uniforms were not supposed to be comfortable. Marrissa sighed. She probably should add the people and start the real part of the program, a chapter titled "the man who saw God," but first she wanted to get the hang of walking on this rolling deck.

...

Captain Jean-Luc Picard was bored. This was not a usual state for the Captain. Commanding Starships did not leave one with much free time, in general, but every once in a while events conspired to clear ship's business from his schedule. Having an efficient First Officer, like Commander Riker helped. Picard had many hobbies which normally filled up his time, but at the moment none of those were drawing him towards them. The planet they were orbiting had no ruins of note, and no horses. He'd finished the last piece with his recently acquired flute, and couldn't think of another one. That left checking his mail.

As Captain he sometimes got some interesting items in his personal box. He kept good filters on it, otherwise unsolicited items would accumulate. An unexpected name caught his eye. Marrissa Flores ... wasn't that the girl he'd made his number one, once? Counselor Troi was still teasing Commander Riker over that. A request for mentor-ship ... Captain Picard hadn't ever received any of these, though he was aware of the program among the ship's schools. Commander Riker had a few over the last few years, as had Beverly.

He tried to recall young Marrissa, it had been a month since that tour. She'd been the eldest of the winners, the 9-10 age bracket, if he recalled correctly. Her hair had been blond, and when she'd steeled herself and stood up to him, her violet eyes had flashed with determination. He had to admit that the child had impressed him. He'd encountered her a couple times in the corridor, since, but hadn't made more than a passing wave. He must have made an impression on the young girl, judging by this request.

Captain Picard put the request aside. Perhaps a walk around his ship would help quell his sense of boredom. It was either that or risk Beverly's wrath for spending too much time on duty. She'd been especially vigilant about that in the last couple weeks, since his annual physical. He stood up and walked out of his quarters. Perhaps he'd wander down to see her instead.

He turned left, then right, heading deeper into the saucer section, passing Stellar Cartography and Waste Extraction. The latter was always one that he half expected to smell as he passed, even though he intellectually knew that the processes used produced no odors.

Just around the corner was Holodeck 5. Like most senior officers, the Captain had made a habit of checking the display every time he passed any of the holodecks. There had simply been too many holodeck accidents on the Enterprise to not take some additional precautions. The display listed the program and those inside, as well as program status. Holodeck 5 was currently playing "Mister Midshipman Hornblower: Chapter 5 Hornblower and the man who saw God." Picard noted that it was in the preparation loop, allowing the users to familiarized themselves with the Indefatigable before beginning the mission. There was just one user, "Marrissa Flores as Midshipman Horatio Hornblower."

Captain Picard, on a whim, quickly added his own name as playing Captain Sir Edward Pellew, and the door opened, revealing the empty quarter deck of the Indefatigable. He paused inside the arch, and ordered, "Computer, provide me with a British Captain's uniform, as appropriate for the era." The computer swiftly switched out his clothes for the blue and white of a Captain of the King's Navy. The door closed and the arch vanished, as he stepped towards the forward edge of the quarter deck.

...

Comments, Compliments, and Criticisms accepted eagerly via the button below.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Two

Chapter Two

Marrissa barely heard the sound of the doors opening, but she did hear them closing, and the sound of boots on the quarter deck above her. She'd left the program open to others joining, in hopes that her parents would join her, or perhaps one of her friends. Jay Gordon had been interested in the book at least. The boot steps were too far apart to be one of her friends though.

She looked up from where she was examining a cannon bellow decks to discover Captain Picard descending from the deck above. She quickly turned towards the Captain and came to attention. With a nervous undertone, she said, "Welcome aboard the HMS Indefatigable, sir."

"Thank you, Marrissa," Captain Picard said, placing his tri-cornered hat under his left arm, as it would have brushed against the low deck-head. "I hope you don't mind me sharing your program. I noticed that you had left it open for others to join, though I doubt you expected me to do so."

"No, sir, I don't mind and I didn't expect ..." Marrissa began, nearly stuttering. Captain Picard cut her off with a wave, before bending down to examine the cannon before her.

"You know, many a Starship Captain has wished for simpler times, and for some unfathomable reason the Napoleonic Wars keep coming up," Picard said, grabbing the rope to pull the cannon inboard. "My first captain, a proper Englishman name Edwin Styles, thought it wasn't the simplicity of the era, but the writers who wrote about it. Of course, the era was really anything but simple, with the constant shifting alliances, and these wooden hulled ships that in some ways are even more complicated to command than a Galaxy Class Starship. At the time, I had some objection to the stories, but as you've no doubt discovered, Forrester is infections."

"Not just Forrester, Kent, Reeman, Pope, and O'Brien, too," Marrissa said, before putting her hand over her mouth. It seemed wrong to interrupt the Captain with her own opinion. He was the Captain, in the words of Kent, one step below God on ship.

Picard looked down at the girl, before swabbing the bore of the canon. "I have to agree. Hmm ... quite clean. I'd say the computer is giving you a good crew in your section."

Marrissa nodded. She stepped back a bit, bitting her tongue She could feel her face warming. This was the Captain. She shouldn't be so familiar with him.

"Well, are you ready to start?" the Captain asked. Marrissa nodded. "Then I believe your division awaits, and I am expected on the quarter deck."

...

Captain Jean-Luc Picard stood to the port of the wheel on the HMS Indefatigable as the ship suddenly filled with officers. It was winter on the Bay of Biscay, a French winter which he was familiar with, in land. The Bay of Biscay was a bit different, though. The ship had just escaped from an westerly gale, where it had to claw it's way safe from shore with the icy sea spray providing ice coated rigging and wet clothes, allowing the bitter cold to penetrate to the body.

As Captain Pellew, a historical Captain, unlike most of Forrester's, he stood in command of that Captain's most famous command. The British had the famous Captains of the era, not that there were not a few good Frogs, to use the lingo of the era, but the British Navy of the era ruled the waves.

It was almost time for inspection. The Midshipmen and their divisions were already mustering, and Jean-Luc was sure that young Hornblower was about to discover something in hers. It would be interesting to see how close the young girl followed the script.

...

Marrissa could feel the sense of restlessness on ship, as she looked over her division in advance of the Captain's weekly inspection. Something looked wrong with the next man standing before her in her division. "What's the matter with your face, Styles?" she asked, barely remembering his name.

"Boils, sir, awful bad." On Styles' face there were a half dozen sticking blobs of plaster.

"Have you done anything about them?" Marrissa asked, recalling the primitive nature of the medicine of the Napoleonic Wars.

"Surgeon's Mate, sir, 'e give me plaister for 'em, an' 'e says they'll soon come right, sir." Styles stood stiff and erect, and she could find no fault with him, but the men beside him, they seemed amused for some reason.

Marrissa looked sternly at the two flanking Styles. "Is there something amusing about Styles' condition that you wish to share?"

They immediately duplicated Styles' stiff posture. "No sir!" Something about their response made Marrissa suspicious. She'd be talking to the Surgeon and Surgeon's mate after inspection. One more walk down her division and back, looking at the dregs that filled the crew of this ship of His Majesty's Navy, and she judged them ready for inspection.

...

Captain Jean-Luc Picard descended to the gun deck, his Cabin Boy trailing behind him ready to take notes. To the port was Kennedy's division, and to the starboard Hornblower's. They were the least senior of his midshipmen, and he'd chosen to see to their divisions last. "Mister Kennedy, let's see how your division stands up."

Kennedy's side was all properly arrayed, with nothing much to comment on, other than a bit of sloppiness in deportment which Picard filed away without comment. "Very good, Mister Kennedy. Now, Miss Hornblower ..." He turned to the division currently being run by Marrissa.

The plasters on Crewman Styles caught his eye, immediately. He decided to throw Marrissa a bit of a bone. "Miss Hornblower, please find out if I need to be concerned about this Crewman's treatment."

"Aye sir!" the girl responded smartly.

"Very good, Miss Hornblower," Picard said. "I shall expect the same or better next time. Crew, as you were. Mr Bracegridle, join me in my quarters."


End file.
